Recently a woman said to me "doughnut shops close at noon".
In my mind I immediately questioned what she said. Has this woman really checked every doughnut shop in the city of Lubbock, Texas? For that is her implication.
Do I really want to live the rest of my life with a possible statement that might not be true?
Is it even important?
The Holy Spirit judged it for me immediately by bringing the following scripture to my mind as I considered the situation.
Matthew 5:37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
As soon as I heard that scripture from the Holy Spirit I knew it was important to check the facts, even on something as seemingly insignificant as the closing time of doughnut shops.
All truth is important.
I Thessalonians 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
I did not want to spend my morning looking for this bit of information. So I went to Internet and checked one franchise of doughnut shop, and found one of their shops stayed open until 1 PM, thus proving this woman's statement was the bearing of false witness.
When we bear false witness it can cause the other person to doubt what we say, and it really should cause the other person to doubt what we say.
Therefore, we cannot afford to go about bearing false witness as Christians.
Another one of our church group once told me something that I questioned. She said something to the effect that men have good sense of direction and women do not.
I knew that was not true. I have an excellent sense of direction. So does Pam Padgett.
I warned her about making generalities to include an entire group in a certain definition.
You can get yourself into trouble when you say all of a group of people are such and such. Or when you say all businesses are such and such. You are usually setting yourself up as a false witness.
It reminds me of the following statement made by the apostle Paul when he corrected the church:
Titus 1:10-13 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.
One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, the Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;
Jesus warns us:
Matthew 12:33-37 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.
O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
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